He spends Christmas Eve with some married friends. He plays their piano and the family sings along. He's a big hit. They want him to come back next year. It's about eleven p.m. when he leaves their party. There's a guy he's been talking to online. They've made a plan to end up back at the apartment where he's staying. Let's call the guy Oscar.

Oscar's been in the country for a few years. Most of his family's in Puerto Rico. The rest are in Atlanta. Oscar and his family are not on speaking terms, especially on Christmas — Oscar's sister being the sole exception.

Oscar's working the reception desk at a hotel in Times Square. His shift ends at eleven p.m. Our friend would love to meet Oscar outside the hotel, perhaps holding a gift.

There should be light snow falling.

But it's almost seventy degrees outside, at eleven p.m., on Christmas Eve, in Times Square.

The weather has made national headlines.

Our friend is sending texts to Oscar, receiving none back.

After each text he sends, our friend waits at least five minutes — he doesn't want his stream of texts to become oppressive.

Our friend is tempted to walk to the hotel where Oscar works.

It would be a twenty-five minute walk from Stuyvesant Town to the hotel. Our friend is tired. He doesn't know if showing up at the hotel where Oscar works would be creepy.

He decides to walk to a subway by an indirect route. The indirect route will add time during which Oscar might text. He walks past several displays of lights.

Ten minutes pass. Ten more minutes pass.

Oscar is too nervous to text our friend.

Oscar is at the end of a nine hour shift.

Oscar's co-worker, who should be coming to replace Oscar, has called in. The co-worker's girlfriend has had an emergency. The co-worker won't be able to come in. Can Oscar please cover the shift for him?

Oscar is too nervous to text our friend with this message. Oscar wants to make a good first impression when meeting our friend. Oscar is trying to find someone else to cover his co-worker's shift, at 11pm, on Christmas Eve.

This is not going to happen.

Oscar can't leave the hotel until his replacement arrives. His replacement isn't going to arrive. Oscar will be working at the hotel eight more hours. Oscar feels pathetic. Especially because his co-worker's story is a transparent lie. There's no emergency. The co-worker wants to spend Christmas Eve with his girlfriend. The co-worker, and probably his girlfriend too, are thinking: Oscar's single, he won't have Christmas Eve plans. Oscar will understand, this is a very special evening for us, we've hardly had any time together recently, Christmas is for families, bullshit bullshit all that bullshit couples say. Oscar's awesome, Oscar will be totally glad to do this for his coupled friend — what are single gay friends for? Oscar's checking another couple into the hotel.

Why do we tell the story of Oscar?

Well,

Our friend finally receives a text from Oscar, explaining the situation. Oscar's text says nothing negative about his coworker. Our friend gets it. Does anyone here not get it?

Oscar will work at the hotel for eight more hours. Oscar will then sleep in a room at the hotel from 7am to 3pm. Oscar will then clock in his Christmas shift at 3pm, and meet our friend at twelve a.m., December 26th, which is arguably still Christmas.

A strange form of insect, not exactly a roach or bedbug, has been seen in the rooms of the hotel. This has never happened before. Both the size and the numbers of the insects are surprising. Customers complain of insect bites.

Dealing with the insects is not Oscar's department.

Oscar can only offer to refund the hotel patrons' money. Over the course of the next twenty four hours he refunds tens of thousands of dollars. The room in which Oscar sleeps is insect free.

He removes his hotel uniform, changes back into the clothes he wore to work yesterday, and takes the subway to the neighborhood when our friend is staying.